Chronicles of Absolution: The Calm before the Storm

Chapter 1

The fighting was fierce and once again she didn't have any problems utilizing her powers. Of course it would have been easier to kill them off the bat but she had been in the mood for an ass kicking and plus she had to make sure that Amelia and Jimmy Novak were out of the way. Castiel had taken over Claire and she made a mental note to have a few choice words about that when this was over.

The bodies the demons possessed were pretty much shells of the people they were except for one. The girl was a fighter and she wanted to give her a chance. It was not a big deal to trap the demon and then pull it. Instead of sending the demon back to hell though, she killed it like she did Jade. The girl would be alright even though she was unconscious. It left her to go and help her friends.

It was a harsh reminder to what she already knew. The body of the demon was on the ground and he was kneeling over. He then looked up at the three of them, with blood smeared on his face. At that point it was like there was nothing; there wasn't anything to say then. At that moment she had to take care of Jimmy and practically flew towards the man. There was nothing else to see but blood…

Angela blinked as she remembered what happened in that warehouse. The plan was perfect to let Jimmy, Castiel's meat suit, go in solo and they follow in through the catwalks. It didn't go quite as planned since the boys got caught. She did have a bit of fun enjoying that they couldn't find her from her vantage point and it allowed for a surprise, especially when she startled the demon riding Jimmy's wife by crashing down just as Castiel came back.

No one seemed to expect her to use her powers as she sent demons flying and set Sam and Dean loose. It was a good old fashioned fist fight as she took on one demon and then pinned him to the wall and pulled it out and killed it with that fire thing she could do. She stayed by Castiel, then occupying little Claire, more out of a habit and they worked well together to team up.

She would have pulled the demon from Amelia but Sam got to that first. Angela paused in her thought process to muse over her thoughts and what she saw. She saw the blood smeared across his face and she could smell it, the unique smell of demon blood. His face though… All she could see was the blood as she watched him turn and pull the demon out of Amelia. He looked like a few of the vamps and other creatures she had hunted that were messy eaters and she felt… She couldn't describe what she felt.

Initially it was shock that hit. She did catch a glimpse of Sam pouncing on the demon like a ravenous animal. Then it turned to sadness. She recalled at that moment a time where another person who needed blood pounced on the unsuspecting victim. There was regret all around but that didn't erase the pain and the guilt from it. Looking at Sam, she was reminded of that and it felt like she may have been too late.

There hadn't been time to address it fully since there was the issue with Jimmy. She went to his side and prepared to examine the wound. She almost wanted to snap at Castiel that he was being a moron and that she could save Jimmy. He had been bleeding pretty badly; stomach wounds did that and if not taken care of then the consequences would be deadly. Instead she threw a nasty look at the angel and continued to work in her examination.

She thought it a great sacrifice that Jimmy made to take back Castiel but it was love for his daughter than prompted it. She could sense it as she worked on healing. She had no qualms of letting them see her glowing hand since what the hell; they saw demons and an angel appearing in their midst. It was just one crazy night for them all.

It had been a surprise when Jimmy grabbed her wrist and looked at her. They shared a look of understanding. It was more like knowing what the other was about. She stopped her healing then with a nod and let Castiel do his thing. Of course she didn't like what he did after that.

I serve heaven. I don't serve man. And I certainly don't serve you.

It was a product of being forcibly dragged back to Bible camp and re-educated. Castiel had warned her that it might happen. His unsanctioned visits and the beseeching on her behalf and just what he did put enough doubt into his superiors' minds that he might not be on the job with them anymore… it got him a ticket back upstairs. He had warned her and she felt like she should have listened and just did what they wanted her to do. And the sad thing was that she sensed something wasn't right and she drove Dean crazy insisting that they hop on the road and burn rubber.

It wasn't until Dean woke up from a dream talking to the angel that they hit the road. It made her feel foolish and angry with herself. She should've gone on her own to help her angel. True they might have been outnumbered but she would have fought and she would have let it be known how she disapproved. No doubt they would remember how she kicked Uriel's ass and they knew she fought and killed two Grigori. Or course that might have meant that they would have rained down on the smiting if they forgot how important she was supposed to be to them.

A sound from behind the door caught her attention and she looked at it. It was salted iron and reminded her of the old bunkers during the world wars. A view port reminded her of the old sailing ships except the shut look had a sense of finality to it. It was supposed to be sort of a hideout from the worst case scenario aka the end of the world but now it was like a prison designed for one thing and one thing only.

She heard the stomping and the noises and she could tell that he was annoyed and slowly getting pissed. She hadn't expected it at all though she probably should have suspected something when Dean 'took a break'. While it annoyed her that he didn't include her, she could understand why to a degree he didn't include her in on the scheme with Bobby; she figured Dean thought she might inadvertently say something in one of hers and Sam's conversations and she might have. She certainly revealed quite a bit of herself since she hooked up with them. It never occurred to her that Dean didn't want Sam to think she was in on it.

"This is isn't funny guys."

No it isn't. It is serious, she thought to herself. It is serious because it is a path few can successfully walk away from and even then it haunts you until the day you die.

"What are you doing here Angie?"

Angela frowned as she looked up from her musings at Dean. He was frowning at her as he came down the stairs like she was a child that had done something bad. She frowned back and replied, "I'm sitting."

"I can see that you're sitting but what are you doing here?"

Angela studied him and said, "I am sitting here because I want to sit here." She was going to be stubborn about it since she wasn't sure why she was torturing herself by listening to Sam call out to them and demand to let him out. "And… Sam needs company," she added in a pouty tone as she turned away.

Dean hadn't meant to sound so harsh with her but he was concerned that she would actually let Sam out of the panic room before his brother had a chance to dry out. He figured that Sam would wheedle her to do it with the puppy eyes and while she may have resisted and occasionally conceded, she would see it as a hurt or sick Sam and try to help. Besides he deserved the snappiness from her when he tricked Sam into going in.

He had planned it out with Bobby. They both agreed that while risky, it was best not to let her in on the plan. It did occur to Dean that she could easily read his mind and guess at it but he was relying on her self-imposed rules and sensibility not to. His other reason was that he didn't want Sam to blame her for this. It was a twisted way of getting Sam to see her for how good she was for him and it was a stark reminder of the same thing he did when he made his deal over a year ago. It was shitty but he hoped that she would understand if not now then in the future.

Bobby had done a convincing job of telling them to go downstairs for the plan. Dean had been the one to stop her from following Sam and he couldn't forget the look on her face when she realized what was going on. Bobby restrained her when she questioned what the hell they were doing and it was rather a relief she didn't break anything including them. Dean looked down at her as she sat on the steps that gave access from the basement to the first floor. She was looking at the door. "Angie we have to do this."

"I know," Angela said quietly. She ended up whispering in a very low voice, "But it is killing us."

Dean didn't hear the last part. He was looking at the door to the panic room and then back at her. "Angie, he has been poisoned."

"There are far worse poisons to come," she muttered. She ended up clearing her throat but she didn't look at Dean. She was just staring at walls but not really seeing what was in front of her. She looked up and studied Dean. "It's going to be worse for all before the end and when the end comes it happens all over again. A vicious cycle and it has just begun." She then stood up and went back up the stairs.

Dean watched as she stood up in a fluid motion and started up the stairs. He raised his brow in worry as she left. Something wasn't right and at the moment he couldn't his finger on it. At the moment though he had bigger concerns and it was sitting in the panic room. He let her go glad that she was nowhere near the door. He trusted her but they couldn't afford for her to be the sympathetic mother at the moment. And that feeling he got on the way down and felt a few moments ago… it was hinky and it was better if she stayed away.

Dean reached the bottom of the stairs and looked at the door. It was quiet behind the door. He looked down at the floor. He just couldn't believe it had gotten this far. Taking a breath, he opened the viewport to take a peek in.

"Okay. Let me out. This is not funny."

"Damn straight," Dean replied as he looked in at the mess that was his brother. He could see his brother clearly as he got closer to the door.

"Dean. Come on. This is crazy."

"No. Not until you dry out." It had been spoken in normal tones but Dean was firm on this. The thing to do after this was to convince Angela to stay away.

Sam twitched his lip as if to retort in anger but he calmed himself and said, "Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lied to you and not to Angie. I should've… Just open the door."

Dean was tempted but he couldn't. "You don't have to apologize. Not to me. It's not your fault. It's not your fault that you lied to me over and over again and you probably lied to her though I can't see why you would. I get it now. You couldn't help it."

That got Sam's dander up. "I'm not some junkie."

"Really? I guess I've just imagined how strung out you've been lately," Dean retorted, the hints of sarcasm returning.

"You're actually trying to twist this into some kind of ridiculous drug intervention?"

"If it smells like a duck."

"Dean, I'm not drinking the demon blood for kicks," Sam retorted firmly. "I'm getting strong enough to kill Lilith."

Dean remembered what Angela said about different kinds of strength. This didn't seem to fit in any possible category she could come up with. What Sam was doing… it was almost desperate, weak and pathetic. "Strong?"

"Yeah."

"This is about as far away from strong as you can get. Try weak. Try desperate. Pathetic." Each word came out like a barb Dean aimed at his brother trying to make him see.

"Killing Lilith is what matters. Or are you so busy being self-righteous you forgot about her?" Sam paused and added, "She wouldn't hesitate. Angie would do what it takes. She's done it before."

"Oh really? Would she do what you've been doing? I don't think so. Oh and by the way, Lilith's gonna die. Bobby and I will kill her or Angie will as you say but not with you."

"You're not serious."

"Congrats Sammy. You just bought yourself a benchwarmer seat to the apocalypse" Dean studied his brother for a moment and then shut the viewport to the panic room. It was a slow climb up the stairs.

"Dean! Let me out of here!"

"I said leave me alone!"

"Calm down Angie. All I did was ask how you are," Bobby said with a puzzled and worried look on his face. He watched as Angela walked holding the teddy bear she had left on his desk in the study. She was hugging it to her chest as she paced back and forth. She had been doing it since she came upstairs.

"Well don't ask," Angela replied in a snappish tone. "We are busy getting through this."

"We?"

"Me," Angela corrected looking annoyed with Bobby as if he got what she said wrong.

"Look I know you're pissed that we didn't bring you in on this but this is really for Sam's own good," Bobby replied thinking that she was being that way on purpose.

"Yes it is for our own good," Angela said, "Because we all know that addiction and then drying out is such a fun oh yeah." The sarcasm was heavy on her tones. "And I need a drink." She moved towards the kitchen to grab anything. She searched around and found one of Bobby's hidden whiskey bottles in the pantry and held it up. "Here's to alcoholism another addiction."

Bobby listened to the sounds from the kitchen and winced when she exclaimed her ridiculous statement. He could hear her slam the door to the pantry shut and pop of the cap on the bottle. He was worried about this. It was like she was behaving like a child who wasn't getting her way but some of the thing she had been saying, the changes in tense and the snappy behavior… it was worrisome. Something was not right.

Angela looked at the bottle of whiskey that was about a third empty and scowled at it. She knew that she couldn't get drunk but it helped to mellow her out. She felt angry and she didn't know why and was well aware that some of the things she was saying didn't make sense. Some of it did since she was thinking about similar times. Her head felt like a tumble of thoughts from the events that happened and her emotions were not completely her own. It was like she was going insane.

She took another swing and motioned with her hands though she looked ridiculous swinging her teddy bear around. She needed to get out of the house. She made a beeline towards the door and headed towards the scrapyard, letting the door fall shut. She headed straight to her personal areas and started pacing back and forth with the bottle of whiskey in one hand and the bear in the other.

"Okay Angie, get a grip on yourself. You're not really mad at Dean," she said to herself. "Oh who the hell are you kidding? You're pissed that he didn't tell us. He locked us in."

Angela stopped and thought about what she just said. What did she just say? She shook her head and groaned, "God what is going on? I am going crazy and I don't know what to do." She looked up at the sky and said, "Do I need to ask for help?"

"No you don't. I was going to give it."

Angela looked down and saw the last person she expected. "What are you doing here Amitiel? I don't need any truth searching or a lie detector."

"No but it looks like you need a friend."

"I have them. I just can't be in the same room with them right now." Angela put a hand to her head and took a breath. It wasn't the alcohol. She was trying to just focus and tame the temper she felt. "I am not angry but I am."

Amitiel studied Angela. She had come when Castiel had been dragged back. She hadn't been visible to the Winchesters or Angela but she kept nearby to keep an eye on things. She watched the whole thing with Castiel's vessel and how he accepted being the angel's vessel. It was a big sacrifice and a perfect example of why she loved her father's creations. Now she was seeing a friend who was reacting to things and didn't know why though she had a couple of ideas but none were definite.

Taking pity, Amitiel offered, "I suspect that maybe something happened and your talents are now running rampart because you don't know of what to make of them."

Angela paused in her musings and looked at Amitiel. She frowned at the archangel and thought about it. She put the whiskey bottle down but didn't relinquish the bear. "So I subconsciously flipped the switch?"

"It is a possibility. You have compassion that is greater than most humans and you have empath abilities." Amitiel shrugged her shoulders gently. She spoke in gentle tones, "Angela, think about it. Whatever happened your thoughts are running and they are feeding your empath and making you more sensitive."

"I get it," Angela said as she nodded in annoyance. She sighed as she closed her eyes to focus. She could do this now. Leave it to an archangel to be right about something. Opening them she motioned towards the scrapyard. "Take a walk?"

Amitiel wasn't quite sure of what Angela meant by that phrase but she determined that the woman was willing to have a talk with her. She nodded and stepped so that she was side by side with the woman and they started walking through the yard with no particular destination in mind. Amitiel said, "Interesting turn of phrase."

"Sam invented it," Angela replied gently with a slight smile. "It's our thing when one or both of us had a bad day. It works." Sighing she looked at the angel and asked, "Why did you come Amitiel? I was not really being serious."

"Oh I know. Still I thought you could use a friend."

"I thought angels didn't make friends. They serve heaven," Angela deadpanned.

"We do but I seem to remember a part of a song that says 'for to his angels He's given a command to guide you in all of your ways'. Seems that there is a lot of wisdom in those words," Amitiel replied. She knew that it would be painful to bring up but… "I know they dragged Castiel back. They sent him to be re-educated."

"I know that. He warned me that it might happen." Angela hugged the bear to her body. "They did a damn good job on him. I just hope that I can get him back."

"There may be no going back for him."

"There has to be a way," Angela looked at the angel. She refused to breakdown and cry. She wouldn't do that. She could get a grip on her emotions. "It's my fault Cas got sent back and… He said that it was getting close to zero hour. That means there is what one or two that need to be broken?"

Amitiel hesitated as she studied Angela. She could see that the soldier was returning. It would hurt but she was going to take it and do what she had to do. Slowly she replied, "That is so. You shouldn't worry though since I think there is another concern. I know about Sam."

"Then you know that it's an ugly and painful process," Angela replied. She looked at the house. "It will get worse before it gets better and in the end it might kill him."

"Then find another way." Amitiel knew that the apocalypse was important but she sensed that this was important as well. She knew that the bigger picture couldn't be addressed unless a smaller one and a foundation was addressed. It could wait and in the end Angela would be focused for what she needed to do.

Angela peered at Amitiel with a suspicious look in her eyes. She was well aware that angels didn't offer advice like that for the sheer hell of it. Besides, the apocalypse was more important to them since it involved the First setting Lucifer free. That was a problem. It wasn't that she didn't believe Amitiel but that angel didn't garner the same level of trust that Gabriel or pre re-educated Castiel did. "What is it to you? I don't know you and yet here you are suggesting that I work on a problem of detoxing from demon blood instead of telling me to shut up and get going on how to find Lilith and gank her ass."

Amitiel had to resist giving a smile. This had been her goal. The more focused Angela was, then the rest would follow. It was how it seemed to work around her. She replied, "That is correct. Sam is not well and that bothers you. When you are bothered, you lose focus and like that rambling mess I found. When you fix what bothers you the focus will be back."

Angela made a slight face at that. She couldn't help but be a bit impressed with the angel and her attempt. She said, "Normally I would have punched you in the face for that."

"And I would have looked forward to it," Amitiel replied with a sweet smile, "Your need to hit something also goes towards you finding your focus."

"You're so annoying."

"I'm Truth. You're Absolution."

Angela couldn't help but chuckle as she looked at the ground. She knew that Amitiel was right. She needed focus and the angel provided. There was the issue with Sam though. What Dean did and locking him up, it was the only way she knew of cleanse someone from demon blood. It was painful and ugly and there was the possibility that the person might die.

Amitiel watched as Angela went into thought. "Sometimes a search could be closer than you think. Often it is right in front of you."

"You're right," Angela said. She ran back to the house. She was out in a short time and heading towards the garage where a cloth covered vehicle was. She was followed by Cerebus and Sasha who had been lounging outside.

She was barely in the driver's seat with Cerebus and Sasha when Amitiel said, "I don't think running away was a solution."

"I'm not running." Angela looked at the angel. "I just had an idea."

A/N: Looks like 3.21 kicks off with Sam being locked in the panic room and Angie is acting a bit peculiar. What's going on there? More to come on The Calm before the Storm...